Method of forming a shoe lining

ABSTRACT

The invention relates to a method of forming a shoe lining. The aim of the invention is to produce a shoe lining which can be connected to the upper and accurately brought into line with the regions of the foot which are to be protected more simply and cheaply than has been possible heretofore. This aim is accomplished by forming a shoe lining comprising providing a web of material including a first layer of weldable foam material and a second dense layer of weldable material overlying the first area, effecting a pressing and heating treatment over a substantial area of the first layer to fuse the foam and make this area dense, while leaving a portion of the first layer untouched to form a cushion.

Dassler [451 Aug. 7, 1973 METHOD OF FORMING A SHOE LINXNG Adolf Dassler, 8522 'Herzogenaurach, am Bahnhof, Germany 22 Filed: Mar.6, 1912 211 Appl. No.: 231,960

[76] Inventor:

Primary Examiner-Patrick D. Lawson Attorney-George F. Dvorak et al.

[57] ABSTRACT The invention relates to a method of forming a shoe lining. The aim of the invention is to produce a shoe lining which can be connected to the upper and accurately brought into line with the regions of the foot which are to be protected more simply and cheaply than has been possible heretofore. This aim is accomplished by forming a shoe lining comprising providing a web of material including a first layer of weldable foam material and a second dense layer of weldable material overlying the first area, effecting a pressing and heating treatment over a substantial area of the first layer to fuse the foam and make this area dense, while leaving a portion of the first layer untouched to form a cushion.

10 Claims, 4 Drawing Figures METHOD OF FORMING A SHOE LINING The present invention relates to shoe linings.

The incorporation of cushioning, especially in the upper of sports shoes, is of particular importance, because, primarily, the positioning and fixing of the cushion must be carried out with care. n the one hand, the foot of a sportsman is subjected to a quite exceptional degree of pressure, most particularly to the heel in the region of the mucous sac of the Achilles tendon, and on the other hand, because of the form-fit being of special importance in sports shoes, the areas where cushioning must be arranged have to be particularly accurately brought into line with those regions of the foot which are to be protected, since any excess of cushioning would permit an undesirable mobility of the foot in the shoe..

Hitherto the cushion proper was incorporated, e.g., adhesively, as a separate part in a pocket formed between the lining of the shoe and the upper. This method is relatively costly since additional work and special care are required for precise orientation of the cushion when connecting it to the upper of the shoe.

According to the present invention there is provided a method of forming a shoe lining, comprising providing a web of material including a first layer of weldable foam material and a second dense layer of weldable material overlying the first layer, effecting a pressing and heating treatment over a substantial area of the first layer to fuse the foam and make this area dense, while leaving a portion of the first layer untouched to forma cushion. With the method of the invention it is possible to produce a shoe lining, or portion thereof,

and its connection to the upper, in such a manner as to position necessary cushioning between lining and upper of shoes, more simply and cheaply than has been possible heretofore.

The method of the invention does not require a separate operational step of incorporating the cushion since the demarcation and precise positioning of the cushion relative to the lining takes place during the manufacture of the liningportion by destruction of the porous structure of the foam material. The lining portion can be connected to the upper much more precisely and simply than can a separate cushioning member.

The weldable layers of the web of material used according tothe invention preferably consist of synthetic material, e.g., PVC and the second layer is preferably non-porous. Thefirst or cushioning layer is preferably a material having closed pores since the cushioning effect of such a material is markedly superior to that of an open-pored material. At the side facing the foot the material forming the walls of the pores may be in the form of a dense skin. Advantageously, the web is formed by heating a foaming material in a mould to provide the first layer, the second layer being formed by fusing at the wall of the mould.

For the purpose of incorporating the lining cut-out in the upper, it has proved advantageous to provide the web of material used according to the invention with an elastically extensible layer, for example of tricot, at the side facing the upper material, that is on the side remote from the second layer.

' The invention also provides a method of constructing a shoe upper,-wherein a portion of the fused dense area of a lining produced by the method of the invention indicated above is connected to the upper. Preferably said area is connected to the exterior of the upper, near the top edge of the heel zone thereof, and the lining is folded inwardly so that the cushion lies within the heel area of the upper.

In order that the invention may more readily be understood, the following description is given, merely by way of example, reference being made to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 shows a lining cut-out obtained by the method according to the invention, for incorporation in the heel region and shank zone along the top edge of the upper;

FIG. 2 shows a section along line lI-ll of FIG. I;

FIG. 3 shows an intermediate step in the incorporation of the lining cut-out in the upper; and

FIG. 4 shows the final step of this operation.

The cut-out portion shown in FIG. I can be obtained by a simultaneous punching and welding operation from a web of material having a smooth and dense skin I of a weldable plastics at the side facing the foot and thereunder a layer 2 of weldable plastics porous or foam material, the two layers being suitably joined together to form a single piece. Thus, the dense layer 1 can be formed at the wall of the mould at the time of foaming the layer 2. The foam layer is provided with an elastically extensible covering 4, e.g., a tricot material, on the face remote from layer 1 and, in use, facing towards the material of the upper 3.

Now, in the production of the lining cut-out shown in FIG. 1 from such a web of material a combined punching and welding tool is used, the extent of the punching rim corresponding to the outline of the cut-out to be produced and working areas of the welding tool being formed so as to correspond to the areas of the cut-out wherein the cushioning or foam layer is to be densified. Exteriorly of these working areas the foam structure of the web of material remains untouched. In the embodiment shown the area 5 within which the foam structure has been densified extends all around the porous layer 2 left untouched. In this manner the surfaces'for connecting the cut-out portion to the cut-to-size material of the upper 3 are created. The correlation of the foam layer 2 (left untouched) and the densified area 5 of the lining cut-out with the upper material 3 can be seen in FIG. 4 which illustrates a preferred application of the method in the production of an upper having a cushion in the region of the mucous sac of the Achilles tendon and the top rim of the upper in the region of the shank zone. The central region of the cut-out member extends over the entire height of the upper in the area of the heel, the lower end being folded onto the insole. Two flaps spread sideways from the central region and extend along the top edge of the upper. The central region of the cushioning layer 2 substantially covers the region surrounding the mucous sac of the Achilles tendon while the flaps form what will eventually be the cushioning of the top edge of the upper.

When incorporating the lining cut-out shown in FIG. 1 the cut-out is first placed with the weldable layer 1 on the outside of the shank and heel zone cut-out 3 of the material of the upper and joined thereto by a seam 6 along the top edge (FIG. 3). The lining portion is then folded over onto the inside of the shank and heel zone cut-out 3 (FIG. 4) and the area 5 of the cut-out is glued to the material of the upper.

It is to be noted that the heat treatment may be performed in a high-frequency or microwave field but also by means of other suitable media or tools.

I claim:

1. A method of forming a shoe lining from a web of material including a first layer of weldable foam material and a second dense layer of weldable material overlying said first layer, the improvement to effect a pressing and heating treatment over a substantial area of said first layer to fuse the foam and make this area dense, while leaving a portion of the first layer untouched to form a cushion, wherein said web is formed by heating a foaming material in a mould to provide said first layer, and said second layer being formed by fusing at the wall of the mould.

2. A method of forming a shoe lining from a web of material including a first layer of weldable foam material and a second dense layer of weldable material overlying said first layer, the improvement to effect a pressing and heating treatment over a substantial area of said first layer to fuse the foam and make this area dense, while leaving a portion of the first layer untouched to form a cushion, wherein the pressing and heating operation is effected by a combined punching and welding tool which simultaneously punches the lining from the web.

3. A method of forming a shoe lining from a web of material including a first layer of weldable foam material and a second dense layer of weldable material overlying said first layer, the improvement to effect a pressing and heating treatment over a substantial area of said first layer to fuse the foam and make this area dense, while leaving a portion of the first layer untouched to form a cushion, wherein a material web, such as tricot, is positioned on the side of said first layer remote from said second layer.

4. A method of constructing a shoe upper provided with a lining in the heel zone from a web of material ineluding a first layer of weldable foam material and a second dense layer of weldable material overlying said first area, comprising the following steps:

a. effecting a pressing and heating treatment over a substantial area of said first layer to fuse the foam and make this area dense, while leaving a portion of the first layer untouched to form a cushion;

b. connecting said area to the exterior of the upper, near the top edge of the heel zone thereof; and

c. folding said lining inwardly so that the cushion lies within the heel area of the upper.

5. A method of constructing a shoe upper provided with a lining in the heel zone from an integral web of material including a first layer of weldable foam material and a second dense layer of weldable material overlying said first area, comprising the steps of effecting a pressing and heating treatment over a substantial area of said first layer to fuse the foam and make this area dense, while leaving a portion of the first layer untouched to form a cushion; and connecting said area to the exterior of the upper.

6. A method according to claim 5 in which said second layer is non-porous.

7. A method according to claim 5 in which said web is formed by heating a foaming material in a mould to provide said first layer, and said second layer being formed by fusing at the wall of the mould.

8. A method according to claim 5 in which the pressing and heating operation is effected by a combined punching and welding tool which simultaneously cushion.

I i l t 

1. A method of forming a shoe lining from a web of material including a first layer of weldable foam material and a second dense layer of weldable material overlying said first layer, the improvement to effect a pressing and heating treatment over a substantial area of said first layer to fuse the foam and make this area dense, while leaving a portion of the first layer untouched to form a cushion, wherein said web is formed by heating a foaming material in a mould to provide said first layer, and said second layer being formed by fusing at the wall of the mould.
 2. A method of forming a shoe lining from a web of material including a first layer of weldable foam material and a second dense layer of weldable material overlying said first layer, the improvement to effect a pressing and heating treatment over a substantial area of said first layer to fuse the foam and make this area dense, while leaving a portion of the first layer untouched to form a cushion, wherein the pressing and heating operation is effected by a combined punching and welding tool which simultaneously punches the lining from the web.
 3. A method of forming a shoe lining from a web of material including a first layer of weldable foam material and a second dense layer of weldable material overlying said first layer, the improvement to effect a pressing and heating treatment over a substantial area of said first layer to fuse the foam and make this area dense, while leaving a portion of the first layer untouched to form a cushion, wherein a material web, such as tricot, is positioned on the side of said first layer remote from said second layer.
 4. A method of constructing a shoe upper provided with a lining in the heel zone from a web of material including a first layer of weldable foam material and a second dense layer of weldable material overlying said first area, comprising the following steps: a. effecting a pressing and heating treatment over a substantial area of said first layer to fuse the foam and make this area dense, while leaving a portion of the first layer untouched to form a cushion; b. connecting said area to the exterior of the upper, near the top edge of the heel zone thereof; and c. folding said lining inwardly so that the cushion lies within the heel area of the upper.
 5. A method of constructing a shoe upper provided with a lining in the heel zone from an integral web of material including a first layer of weldable foam material and a second dense layer of weldable material overlying said first area, comprising the steps of effecting a pressing and heating treatment over a substantial area of said first layer to fuse the foam and make this area dense, while leaving a portion of the first layer untouched to form a cushion; and connecting said area to the exterior of the upper.
 6. A method according to claim 5 in which said second layer is non-porous.
 7. A method according to claim 5 in which said web is formed by heating a foaming material in a mould to provide said first layer, and said second layer being formed by fusing at the wall of the mould.
 8. A method according to claim 5 in which the pressing and heating operation is effected by a combined punching and welding tool which simultaneously punches the lining from the web.
 9. A method according to claim 5 in which a material web, such as tricot, is positioned on the side of said first layer remote from said second layer.
 10. A method according to claim 5 in which the fused dense area of said first layer completely surrounds the cushion. 